Tooth loss is a common problem for many people, but no one wants to smile with missing teeth. To fix that, there are a handful of treatment options: crowns or bridges, removable dentures, or implants. Implants are an innovative and permanent solution wherein bone is carefully drilled to fit titanium cylinders which will be left in place for several months to let the bone and titanium bond together (Rosenstiel et al., 2006). Despite the availability of many treatment options for missing or extracted teeth, people are increasingly choosing dental implants over dentures, crowns, bridges, or living with missing teeth due to its many advantages, the main being one that they look and feel like natural teeth the most. Here are the benefits of dental implants:
PRESERVES BONE
Natural teeth are planted in the sockets of our bones. The teeth and the bone are in a very close relationship, and so the presence or absence or teeth can dictate the future form and integrity of the bone (Jivraj & Chee, 2006). If teeth are missing for a long period of time, the bone around the area of the missing tooth/teeth show changes in its form. It will become less dense, and it will lose its normal height and width. This pattern of continually “losing” the structure of the bone will continue for as long as the patient remains without teeth which, of course, will have negative implications on the patient. Other than experiencing difficulty in eating, speaking, and smiling, making a prosthesis for him or her will be more difficult due to less surfaces available (Jivraj & Chee, 2006).
Fortunately, dental implants can address the continual bone loss on areas without teeth. Bone will not lose its former shape and structure as much, because the artificial root placed will act like what a normal tooth in a socket would do (Jivraj & Chee2, 2006). Other removable dentures will not be able to preserve bone as efficiently as dental implants. On the contrary, removable dentures can even speed up the loss of bone if not fabricated correctly (Jivraj & Chee, 2006), so you have to choose carefully and weigh your options.
PERMANENTLY REPLACES MISSING TEETH
Generally, anything we remove from our body must be replaced. A missing arm or leg needs a prosthetic replacement due to the functional problems that will be encountered. The same line of thinking is applicable to loss of teeth. Long term tooth loss can lead to complications such as changes in the bite or face shape, poor appetite, and digestion problems (Jivraj & Chee, 2006). These are brought about by the lack of efficient chewing and “structure” on the mouth and face.
Not only do implants replace missing teeth, they are described as the “nearest equivalent to a missing tooth” (Palmer, 1999), where screw serves as the “artificial root” and a replacement crown, bridge, or denture will be positioned on top of it (Bautista, n.d).
IMPROVES CHEWING FORCE AND EFFICIENCY
Difficulty in chewing is a common complaint for patients who have lost their teeth for a long period of time. The presence of teeth, either natural or artificial, is required, so that difficulty in chewing can be addressed. Patients with only a few teeth left or none at all will generate less chewing force which weakens their ability to chew (Jivraj, 2006). A drastic outcome of this can be poorer digestion, since patients may swallow bigger chunks of food which are more difficult to digest (Jivraj & Chee, 2006).
Merely having a replacement for teeth is not sufficient. The replacement should be able to give an optimum biting force that best helps the patient to chew properly, and this is what dental implants do. This is possible, due to the increased support from the implant screw that is embedded in bone. Additionally, patients with dental implants had a greater maximum chewing force capability than patients with a removable prosthesis (Jivraj & Chee, 2006). Following dental implant placement and restoration, patients were able to chew better as shown by their ability to eat more variety of food (Elsubeihi et al, 2003). In fact, patients also report being more comfortable chewing, hence a better quality of life with dental implants (Lindhe et al., 2008).
PRESERVES REMAINING TEETH
Dental implants are a relatively conservative treatment for the replacement of missing teeth. Other treatments which can be done to replace missing teeth may be a fixed bridge, the main difference of fixed bridges being that the teeth beside the missing area are reduced and shaped, so that a bridge can be placed over them. The issue here is that removing tooth structure can compromise the overall health of the tooth (Lindhe et al., 2008). The lifespan of a healthy tooth which was modified to receive a bridge will shorten, since its pulp health can worsen and the surrounding gums can also be negatively affected (Jivraj & Chee, 2006).
Placement of dental implants as a replacement for missing teeth will not do these harms to the remaining healthy teeth. Since implants are surgically placed on an artificial root, no additional reduction of tooth structure is required, thereby preserving the health and integrity of the remaining teeth. Furthermore, dental implants are less aggressive to remaining teeth and this can improve oral health of patients (Jivraj & Chee 2, 2006).
DOES NOT DEVELOP DENTAL CARIES
Dental caries, also known as cavities, is a disease caused by various factors (Pitts et al., 2017). This is a major problem in people of all ages, and it is also a leading cause of tooth loss. In addition, patients who already lost teeth are still at risk of developing dental caries on their remaining teeth. In the replacement of lost teeth using other treatments such as a removable prosthesis or a fixed bridge, it is important to note that the teeth used to hold the prosthesis are not exempted from developing dental caries. On the contrary, these teeth are actually more prone to having dental caries in the long run. Other than dental caries, we must also watch out for bleeding gums, more plaque, and possibly mobile teeth (Jivraj & Chee, 2006).
Luckily, one of the main benefits of implants is that they do not get cavities, as implants do not have the structures of natural teeth which develop caries. Moreover, since it prevents the development of cavities, they can preserve adjacent, healthy teeth (Jivraj & Chee, 2006).
PREVENTS FACIAL CHANGES DUE TO LOSS OF TEETH
Tooth loss has many consequences especially if left unreplaced for long periods of time. The bite of the patient can eventually collapse, because missing teeth cannot hold the space for their adjacent teeth anymore. Therefore, remaining teeth can erupt higher than others, while other teeth can start to tilt (Dosumu, 2014). Accordingly, the facial shape of the patient will be affected. Since teeth give and hold the shape of our lips and cheeks (Dosumu, 2014), without them, the shape and position of our jaws will change too, causing us to have a more forward chin and lower lip (Tallgren et al., 1991).
Since dental implants put an artificial root in the bone, it replicates the way natural teeth hold the bone. Apart from that, the fixed restoration on the implant helps prevent tilting and erupting of remaining teeth, and it maintains this position for as long as the dental implant remains in place.
PROVIDES EXCEPTIONAL ESTHETICS
Evidently, esthetics is one of the reasons why patients would like to have their missing teeth replaced, since tooth loss greatly affects esthetics. Everyone tends to feel conscious of their smile, and patients with missing teeth can often become shy when smiling due to a “black hole” where the tooth is missing.
To achieve a beautiful smile desired by patients, both teeth and gums must be restored while considering the way it will blend with the remaining form of the patient’s mouth. Implants are capable of harmonizing with the patient’s face, frame of smile, and the individual (Ihde & Sipic, 2019). Dental implants also give psychological benefits to the patient due to the improvement of their overall appearance (Elsubeihi et al, 2003), making them feel more confident and satisfied with their smile and looks.
FIXED PROSTHESIS IN THE MOUTH
Patients with removable dentures usually complain of rocking or falling dentures, which can be uncomfortable and embarrassing. Because of this, people with missing teeth usually prefer having their teeth replaced with fixed restorations rather than removable ones.
Having a fixed tooth replacement is one of the advantages of dental implants. It looks and feels as if a natural tooth was in place. Thus, the patient’s worries of falling or rocking dentures will be eliminated.
PROVEN TO HAVE LONG TERM LOW FAILURE RATE
As much as possible, it is preferred for dental procedures to be successful and to last a long time in the mouth for function and esthetics. Based on research, dental implants have a very low failure rate (Moy, 2005), with implants that replace a single missing tooth having the lowest failure rate among other implant procedures (Jivraj, 2006). This means that dental implants can survive in the mouth of patients for a very long time. As long as a patient can maintain clean and healthy implants and improve his or her oral hygiene, then the patient’s experience with dental implants will be pleasant and long–lasting.
IS EASY TO MAINTAIN
Unlike other treatment options where the maintenance of oral hygiene would need to be modified to clean a bridge or a denture, with dental implants, there’s no need to change your oral hygiene habits if you have an implant. All you would need to do is brush and floss as if it were a natural tooth (“Top 10 benefits of dental implants,” 2018).
IMPROVES ORAL HEALTH AND OVERALL HEALTH
A well–placed and well–maintained dental implant is known to last for a very long time. Implant dentistry replaces missing teeth with the main goal of returning a patient to his or her oral health (Jivraj & Chee, 2006). This means that teeth will be replaced while maintaining the health of the remaining teeth. This in turn helps the patient chew more efficiently, speak more clearly, and smile more confidently.
Thanks to advancements in dentistry and for all the reasons stated above, it’s no surprise that more and more patients prefer dental implants as a replacement for their missing teeth. In summary, with its high success rate, excellent esthetics, improved chewing, preservation of bone and remaining teeth, as well as benefits to overall health and appearance, dental implants are a permanent and conservative solution to missing teeth that would make it part of anyone’s top treatment options.
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